CSI Miami: The Rape of Horatio Caine
by CelticLady00
Summary: Miami has a serial killer in town – young people are being kidnapped, raped and then killed in the worst way with clues left at each scene to taunt the Police. The rape scene has been deleted by this site, so it will no longer be included..
1. Chapter 1

**The Rape of Horatio Caine - Chapter 1 of 10**

**Title:** CSI Miami - The Rape of Horatio Caine  
**Author:** Celtic Lady  
**Genre: **Hurt/Comfort, Angst  
**Pairing(s): **Horatio Caine/Jade Reno  
**Characters: **General cast plus an other character named Jade Reno  
**Rating:** M-MA **(Mature - age 16+) (Rape) **

**Summary: **Miami has a serial killer in town – young people are being kidnapped, raped and then killed in the worst way with clues left at each scene to taunt the Police. Horatio feels each victim's pain as he works the case trying to catch the killer before he strikes again never realizing that the next victim will be from his own lab.

**Author's Notes: **This story is set after the end of Season 5 thus Ryan Wolfe is not working at the lab. This is the second of a three story arc that includes my other character – Jade Reno. The first story being "Eye On Crime," which introduced the character, and the last being "Jaded", which concludes the character.

**Disclaimer: **I don't own the characters (except Jade) so please don't sue. If the real owners want to use anything from my story (yeah, wishful thinking), go ahead, you can have it for free. :-)

* * *

Alexx brushed a spider web aside as she entered the abandoned building. She saw the broken piece of plywood, that once covered the door, barely hanging by a couple of nails. It was dark and dusty inside as she walked toward the sound of voices in the back room. When she turned the corner, there was the crime scene and she couldn't believe her eyes. A young girl had been brutally murdered and hung from the ceiling by her neck.

"Oh my Lord," exclaimed Alexx as she looked at the horror in front of her.

Horatio walked over to Alexx and gently touched her elbow as he whispered, "I know this is hard to witness, but I need to know as much as I can about what happened to this young lady."

She nodded and walked closer to began her preliminary examination of the body being careful not to step in the pool of blood that had accumulated below.

"Rigor has come and gone." She looked at the marks on the girls body. "There is an awful lot of trauma here. I can't say for sure how she died until I get her back to the lab."

"Can you give me an estimated time of death Alexx?" Horatio asked.

"One . . . maybe two days ago. It's hard to say." Alexx motioned for the men to take down the body and bag it. "I'll let you know what I find."

"I found something!" Eric motioned for Horatio to come closer. On a wooden crate laid a VHS tape of Nightmare on Elm Street.

"Eric, I want everything – nothing is too small," Horatio demanded as he started outside.

Frank Tripp walked out with him and dryly commented, "we're on Elm Drive . . . looks like we have a Freddy Krueger copycat?" He shook his head in disgust at the sick joke. "All we need is some sick joker trying to make a name for himself."

"Let's hope not Frank." Horatio squinted in the bright sun. "Let's hope not." He put on his sunglasses and left.

_Play "Won't Get Fooled Again" here and pretend the credits are running by. :-) _

--OOO--

The crime lab was busy as Eric Delko started processing the VHS tape for prints. Everyone knew this would be a high profile case especially since it involved a child and such brutality. The tape was dusty and the chance of prints was minimal but he still had to try as he prepared the super glue and hung the outer casing so the fumes could engulf it.

Moments later, Calleigh Duquesne came walking in just in time to witness Delko's frustration as he slapped his palms down on the table hard.

"Not going so well?" she asked cautiously to an obvious observation. "Is there anything I can do to help?"

Eric took a deep breath and pointed to the remaining evidence bags, filled with the victim's clothing. "You could give me a hand with these."

"Sure!" Calleigh smiled. She was hoping he'd be open to her assistance.

Meanwhile, Alexx was beginning her detailed examination of the body with Horatio standing by in the observatory watching her every move. She turned on her recorder and began describing what she found.

"Several broken ribs, broken collarbone, immense blunt force to the abdomen." Alexx stated. "I estimate she is around 12 years old . . . maybe 13." She moved down the body as she spoke. "Extreme signs of rape and sodomy. I'll collect samples for trace."

She continued her external examination and prepared the rape kit. She also scraped under the girls fingernails for any possible evidence that might be there. "Horatio, I've got two gray hairs that don't belong to this poor baby." She looked up to the glass observatory only to catch a glimpse of Horatio rushing out the door.

He was by her side immediately, "I'll get those to trace."

As he walked up to Natalia Boa Vista, he handed her the envelopes to be processed, "Can I get a rush on this?"

Natalia knew that if he brought the evidence himself, he really wasn't asking - he was expecting. "Sure. No problem." She took the envelopes and started processing them immediately. Noticing that Horatio wasn't leaving, she commented, "I'll call you when I have something."

Horatio caught the hint that she didn't like him watching over her shoulder and left.

As he continued down the hallway, Horatio entered the room where Eric Delko was processing the fingerprint he collected off the video tape. "Any luck?"

"Still searching." Delko looked at the screen, "I sent the tape to AV in case it's been recorded over."

"Good." Horatio wanted no stone unturned in this case. He paused to look at the screen hoping a match would suddenly appear. "What about the victim's prints, any ID yet?"

Delko shook his head, "No, nothing."

Horatio's cell phone rang. "Yes." He listened for a moment, "On my way Frank."

Frank had been going through the missing persons reports trying to find the identification of their victim. "Horatio, I have two missing children that match our vic."

Horatio quickly jumped on the information, "Let's go talk to these families, Frank, and see what they can give us."


	2. Chapter 2

**The Rape of Horatio Caine - Chapter 2 of 10  
By Celtic Lady**

The shadows of the afternoon were beginning to show in the streets as the tall buildings hid the glaring sun. Horatio and Frank had visited one family only to eliminate them as the parents of their victim. Eric Delko had notified Horatio that no matches were found on the fingerprint on the tape and from the victim.

As they were driving to meet with the second family, Horatio's phone rang. It was Natalia.

"Bad news. No DNA from the hairs - no roots. Sorry." Natalia knew Horatio would be disappointed. She also knew that they'd have to wait for another victim to possibly get a break. Another victim meant another dead child.

Horatio and Frank pulled into the driveway of the Dawson family. As they exited their car, the mother came out the front door to inquire about her missing child. "Have you found her yet?" she frantically asked.

Horatio was the first to speak up, "ma'am, may we go inside." He didn't want to discuss the case outside. The lady motioned them inside and they took a seat on the couch while she sat in a chair. "Do you know anything?" she asked again.

"Well, we're not sure." Horatio paused while thinking how he should approach the woman. "Do you have a picture of your daughter?"

She went into the other room and returned with a framed portrait of her daughter, Emily. "This was taken last summer when we were in Phoenix."

As Horatio and Frank looked at the photo, a sick feeling came over Horatio. " Ma'am, we are going to need you to come down to the crime lab. We found your daughter." He handed the picture back to her. "We're sorry for your loss."

Emily's mother didn't fully realize what they were saying until that last sentence. Then the truth hit her that her little girl was dead and she'd never see her alive again.

"My baby? What happened?" Tears ran down her face. "She's our only child . . . how can this happen?"

Horatio assured her that they would do all they possibly could to find her daughter's killer. In fact, it would be their number one priority.

After interviewing Emily Dawson's parents, the CSI team had little information to go on. Emily had been abducted in broad daylight as she walked over to a friends house just two blocks away from her own. No one had seen a thing.

After receiving a phone call from Dan Cooper, Horatio stopped by the AV lab to see what Cooper had found.

"I watched the whole tape and found that some scenes had been replaced by actual footage of the murder." He played one such part for Horatio. "Here is the original film . . ." He waited until the new image appeared, "and here is the added footage."

"Wait a minute. Run that again," demanded Horatio as he looked closer at the screen. "That isn't our victim. It's someone else."

Cooper wasn't expecting to discover a second victim on the tape. He had just assumed that it was the current murder victim. "Let me collect all the added scenes and see what I can put together for a location."

"Yes! Let me know as soon as you find something." Horatio was off to find Frank and inform him of a second undisclosed murder somewhere.

--OO--

The next morning, Horatio was in the AV lab early checking with the night crew who had worked diligently on the video tape. Tyler Jensen had extracted all the scenes and put them together for a continuous viewing. Dan Cooper arrived just in time to watch the tape with Horatio. The scene was brutal to watch as another child was tortured. Cooper turned away several times whereas, Horatio focused even harder trying to pick up any detail that might help him locate the little girl.

"What is she saying?" demanded Horatio as he tried to make out the words. "She's saying something to the killer."

"We need Jade Reno. She can read lips," Cooper offered.

Horatio jumped on that suggestion, "Let's get Jade in here to translate."

Cooper looked down at his watch, "She's probably asleep right now."

Horatio looked puzzled. "I thought she worked the midnight shift?"

"No, she got moved to the second shift," Jensen added.

Cooper taunted, "yeah, kicking and screaming."

"I got moved to the Midnight shift," Jensen continued as he stressed the word I.

Again Cooper teased, "also kicking and screaming."

Horatio opened his cell phone and called Jade at home.

"Jade, this is Horatio. Sorry to wake you but we need your help. Please pick up." He waited for an answer.

Cooper and Jensen gave each other a puzzled look as they wondered why Horatio had Jade's home phone number saved on his cell.

"Jade?" Horatio could tell she had been sleeping by the lack of enthusiasm in her voice. "I understand you read lips?" He listened for a moment then continued, "I have a video tape of a missing child -- I need to know what she is saying. Can you come in?" Another pause, then, "Great!"

He ended the call and instructed Cooper to have a bottle of Mountain Dew waiting for her, then he left. Cooper and Jensen were discussing a possible Horatio-Jade romance when Delko walked in causing them to immediately changed the subject.

"Did you catch Eye on Crime last night?" Delko queried. "It was our episode."

Cooper couldn't resist a snide remark. "I almost went blind. They should have had some kind of warning."

Jensen gave a bewildered look and Cooper was all too willing to explain. "Delko did an all over wet T-shirt exhibit when they were filming here." Cooper couldn't help but laugh at Delko, "Dude, wear some underwear!"

Jensen quickly understood as Delko gave Cooper a disapproving smirk. "I didn't know the camera was focused on me."

"Yeah, right." Cooper rolled his eyes.

"So I guess you'll have the women lined up now, asking you out," Jensen prompted.

Delko just shook his head with a smug look on his face. Before he could respond, his cell phone rang. "Delko." His demeanor changed as he listened. "I'm on my way."

He rushed out the door before anyone could ask him what was up.


	3. Chapter 3

**The Rape of Horatio Caine - Chapter 3 of 10  
By Celtic Lady**

It was your usual hot Miami day as Delko and Calleigh arrived at the crime scene. The row of storage units looked quite peaceful until they turned the corner and saw all the flashing lights. Delko parked the Hummer and Calleigh climbed out. As they approached the open door, both could see the young victim on the floor. Except for the body and a DVD, the storage room was bare.

Alexx was examining the body. "Looks like another one Horatio," Alexx replied in a sullen voice. "Different M.O. on the death though." She pointed to the multiple gunshot wounds. "Only difference is that this poor thing was shot . . . not stabbed."

Delko began photographing the scene and bagged the DVD for evidence as Horatio and Frank stood by. Calleigh scanned the outside area for cameras but found none so he turned her attention to the ground. She noted aloud, "no marks on the asphalt."

Horatio replied to her, "so the killer wasn't in a hurry. He took his time."

Frank remarked to Horatio, "this has to be a dump site. We're having the company give us a list of the renters. The manager said he'd come out and check some other lockers to make sure there aren't any more bodies laying around."

"Let me know what you find." Horatio squinted in the bright sun. "I'll be in the lab." He put on his sunglasses and left.

It didn't take long for Horatio to reach the parking lot at the crime lab. He witnessed several reporters parked around the front door waiting for someone to come out and give them some information – he knew his job just got harder. They were questioning everyone who came or went when suddenly, Jade Reno walked out and the swarm appeared around her with microphones and cameras thrust in her face. Although she seemed like an unlikely person who would know anything with her faded jeans and worn T-shirt, the badge on her belt had given her away as someone who worked there. Upon seeing her, Horatio honked his horn. She was glad for the diversion and quickly joined him in the Hummer.

"God, this is a madhouse!" she exclaimed.

Horatio nodded as he added, "and it's going to get worst before it gets better." The cameras had swarmed around his vehicle now and were filming the two sitting inside.

"I put the transcript on your desk," Jade offered. "There wasn't anything of much use - kids don't usually offer useful clues." She rubbed her tired temple, "I was just going to head home and take a nap before I start my shift. That video really brought me down."

"I tell you what, why don't you do that and as of now, let's put you on days," Horatio suggested. "Come in early tomorrow and check in with me."

That was the greatest news she'd received in a long time -- days. Everyone knew once you made days, you were in the prime spot but she wasn't sure if she'd be able to handle the images she was seeing. She shook off the idea – she was on days now.

"Great, see you tomorrow." Jade dropped her sunglasses down onto her nose and climbed out of the car.

Horatio entered the building and almost made it to his office before IAB Rick Stetler intercepted him. "I hear you have a high profile case? How's it going?" he inquired.

Horatio didn't feel like making small talk with him and besides he knew Rick held a vendetta against him. "Not now, Rick. Not now." Horatio just kept walking. Rick had a bad habit of showing up when Horatio was most frustrated and he was convinced Rick did it on purpose.

As Jade was driving home, her cell phone rang. A glance at the caller ID told her exactly who it was.

"Hey sweetheart, how's it going?" A smile came over her face as she was talking.

"I have good news, I'm officially on days starting tomorrow." The caller seemed to know how important that was and congratulated her.

"I've spotted the mark but haven't decided how to move on him yet. Looks like we're moving into phase two now. Wish me luck." As she ended the call, she turned up the radio to listen to her favorite song, Rich Girl, and began singing along, "_If I was rich girl (na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na nah), see, I'd have all the money in the world, if I was a wealthy girl . . ."_

As the day wore on, Horatio was getting more and more frustrated. Frank was accumulating more and more missing children reports and Alexx was finding little in the way of useful forensic evidence on the bodies. This guy was good. As he walked down the hallway to trace, Cooper knocked on the window and motioned him in.

"I've gone over the DVD and just want to confirm . . . is this your first murder victim?" He stopped a frame for Horatio to get a clear look.

"Yes it is." He thought for a moment, "So the killer left this DVD on the second victim and a unidentified video on the first. That means we still have a body out there." He rushed out the door to see Eric Delko.

"Eric, have we ID'd the second girl yet?" Horatio asked.

"Yeah. Her parents came in when they heard there was a serial killer on the loose." The nearby printer finished printing a report which Eric immediately grabbed and looked over. "DNA confirms it's Rose McGrainer." He handed the printout to Horatio.

"Okay." He looked at the paper then continued, "Have we ID'd the first girl on the video tape yet?"

Eric shook his head, "Still working on that one. Frank has a few leads though so maybe by the end of the day."

"Good . . . Good." Horatio handed the report back to Eric, "Let me know as soon as you find out."

--OO--

Day three of the onslaught of dead bodies was beginning and Horatio hadn't slept a wink. He couldn't get the images of the young girls out of his mind. The brutality was so overwhelming. He kept remembering the beatings he use to receive by his father, as a child, and how much they had hurt – the pain was still fresh in his mind as though it had happened yesterday. The numerous broken bones was unbearable to him at the time but seemed lame compared to what these girls had suffered. He couldn't begin to walk in their shoes.

Horatio got up early hoping that the night shift didn't have another body to add to his list but was not so lucky as his phone rang. Another victim was found in an abandoned building on the outskirts of town. He was on his way.

"What do we have gentlemen?" Horatio asked the police officers on the scene.

"Take a look for yourself." The officer escorted him inside to the body. "He nailed this one to the wall."

The third body was that of a young boy. Everything looked the same -- the brutality, the sexual assault, the extreme trauma to the body, Horatio wondered if this was really another victim of their killer or a copycat. He looked around the room for evidence when he saw it -- a DVD was propped up on the window sill. His heart sank . . . no child was safe.

Frank Tripp arrived shortly thereafter, "What do--." He stopped in mid sentence as he saw the body on the wall. "Jesus!" He found himself speechless as he stared.

"Is this the same killer?" he inquired of Horatio.

"Yeah, Frank." Horatio motioned to the window. "He left his calling card."

Frank was a seasoned detective but even he was having a hard time understanding this case. He scratched his head, "so he likes boys and girls?"

"Anything to go on? Any evidence?" Frank questioned. "Coz we've got nothing in the way of suspects. No witnesses either!"

Horatio shook his head no as Alexx arrived. She looked tired. Horatio figured she wasn't sleeping either. He wasn't sure if anyone was.

Alexx spoke few words as she looked over the body and then instructed for the boy to be taken down and bagged.

"I'll make this one my priority Horatio," was all she said as she touched his arm and then left.

Everything was collected that could possibly have any connection so Horatio felt he should return to the office. As he started to climb into the Hummer, he noticed a dusty VCR tape sitting on his seat. Horatio quickly looked around.

"Eric!" he yelled. "I've got something."

Eric came running as did Frank and Calleigh.

Horatio pointed to the tape. "Someone left this for us. Did anyone see anybody around my car?" No one was watching the vehicles, they were all focused on the crime scene.

"Eric, process this one first," was his only instruction as he left.


	4. Chapter 4

**The Rape of Horatio Caine - Chapter 4 of 10  
By Celtic Lady**

Jade was busy analyzing the DVD left with the second victim and trying to read the lips of the young girl while trying her best not to notice the violence involved.

"Dan, I need a break." She grabbed some money out of her purse and left for the soda machines. The images were very upsetting to her and she was using all her strength to keep from crying for these poor kids. As Jade put her money in the machine, she hit the button and then rested her forehead on the machine while waiting for her soda to fall down. She didn't hear anyone come up behind her and was startled when he spoke.

"That bad, huh."

She smiled at being caught and turned around slowly. "Yeah, it's pretty bad."

He offered his hand as he introduced himself, "I'm Rick Stetler." She shook his hand as she joined in, "I'm Jade Reno."

"Nice to meet you Jade." Stetler smiled. "I guess you're working on the child murders?"

"Yeah, sort of." She smiled back but then her smile dimmed. "It's not pretty."

"So are you DNA or some other specialty?" he inquired.

She grabbed her bottle of Mountain Dew from the opening. "I'm Audio-Visual."

Stetler's smile dimmed as well as he started to understand. "So you're going over all the videos being recovered."

Jade nodded yes as she twisted off the cap of her soda. "I needed a break really bad," she stated then took a sip of her soda.

Stetler shrugged his shoulders, "so how is the case going?"

"No where. We don't have anything." She paused awkwardly, "I guess I had better get back. Nice meeting you Rick."

Jade returned to the AV lab only to find it crowded with Horatio, Frank, Eric and Calleigh. Dan Cooper had loaded the latest VCR tape which everyone was watching intently – only this tape had audio. Jade walked into the lab and was instantly bombarded with the horrendous screams of a child being tortured.

She joined them and starred at the screen, but found herself struggling to breath and her heart felt like it was racing out of control. Beads of sweat began to form on her forehead as her jaw clenched shut. Looking around the room she saw the face of each person focused on the screen. She felt woozy. Jade knew that if she didn't get out of that room fast, she'd break down in tears. Dropping her bottle of Mountain Dew, she ran from the room and down the hallway almost knocking Stetler down in the process. He could see the tears on her face and knew something was very wrong so he want to the AV lab to investigate secretly hoping he could find out more about the case.

"Everything okay in here?" Stetler caught a part of the tape before Dan turned it off. "I just saw Jade Reno running down the hall in tears."

Horatio walked up close to Stetler and remarked, "everything is under control Rick. Did you need something?"

Stetler could detect the chill in Horatio's voice and didn't push it. "Just checking, that's all." He thought it best to leave at that point.

Dan felt he should explain Jade's behavior, "Jade has been having a difficult time stomaching these tapes and to be honest, so have I."

Horatio understood, "these tapes are important. I need everyone on board if we are going to catch this killer." He turned his attention back to the tape. "Mr. Cooper, start where we left off."

Rick Stetler went in search of Jade finally locating her in the parking lot sitting in her car crying. He wasn't sure if he should approach her or not but finally decided that it wouldn't hurt to offer his shoulder for her to cry on. He tapped on the driver's side window which startled Jade as she quickly looked up. Seeing who it was, she opened the window.

"You okay?" he asked.

She tried to control her sobs so she could respond but found it difficult. Sensing her vulnerability, Rick went around and climbed into the passenger seat. All he could do was extend his arms and hold her.

After watching the tape for some time, Horatio had seen enough. He decided he had better go in search of Jade since she hadn't yet returned.

A thorough search of the building left Horatio puzzled as to where Jade could be hiding. He finally decided to see if her car was still in the parking lot. As he glanced outside, he found her sitting in her car with Rick Stetler and his arms were around her. Although this troubled him, he hoped it was just an innocent encounter. After watching for a few minutes, Horatio decided to talk with her later when she was alone. He walked downstairs to visit Alexx instead.

"Alexx, what do you have for me?" He inquired.

She opened the folder containing her findings. "There was a lot of blood loss but that wasn't what killed him."

Horatio was intrigued as he looked closer.

Alexx opened the refrigerated compartment holding the boy and pulled out the drawer.

"This poor thing was electrocuted."

"Electrocuted. Are you sure?" Horatio was stunned.

"He was tortured with electric shock and finally it was just too much for him." Alexx placed a gloved hand on the top of the boy's head as she pointed to several burn spots on his skin.

"This killer is so methodical. It's all about extending the torture for as long as possible." Alexx shook her head. "Kids are easy prey but I'm not sure he'd stop there."

This baffled Horatio. "You mean he'd target anyone . . . not just kids."

"I'm no profiler, but I wouldn't be surprised." Alexx pulled the sheet back over the victim and closed the drawer. "Horatio, we need to get this guy! He's not going to stop."

Horatio agreed as he thanked her and left. The bodies were piling up and he knew what he had to do – it was time to contact the FBI. He went to his office and put in the call.

Meanwhile, Jade had convinced Stetler that she'd be okay and thanked him for caring. After he left her car, she placed a call to FBI Agent Peter Elliott.

"Peter, we have a problem."


	5. Chapter 5

**The Rape of Horatio Caine - Chapter 5**** of 10  
By Celtic Lady**

Hours later, Horatio saw Jade walk past his office and decided it was as good of time as any to talk to her. He opened the door to his office and called her in.

"Have a seat." Horatio sat in a similar chair rather than behind his desk. "I want to talk to you about the videos and this case."

Jade took a deep breath to prepare herself for what she had to say. "Horatio, before you start, I need to excuse myself from this case."

He was surprised to hear this. "Jade, I know it's hard . . . but we have a killer on the loose. I need your expertise." He softly placed his hand on Jade's shoulder as a show of understanding.

"I can't Horatio." She desperately tried to think of the right words to describe her situation. "I have a . . . you don't understand . . . I could compromise this case. I have a good reason for this request and I'm not going to . . . I shouldn't have to tell you . . . " Her frustration was apparent as she searched her brain for the right words. She thought for a minute before continuing, "I have a very good reason for my request and I'm not going to tell you the details just so it can make the rounds through the gossip mill. I deserve to have a private life."

"I see." Horatio wasn't expecting this and wasn't sure how to respond.

Jade persisted, "Trust me. It won't do anyone any good if the case gets thrown out of court just because I compromised it through association."

Horatio thought he was starting to understand and knew he was treading onto shaky ground when he inquired, "Jade, are you a rape victim?"

She was shocked and suddenly looked away, "that's none of your business."

Horatio shook his head in acknowledgement as he looked towards the floor. "What if I kept your involvement minimal?" He looked up to gage her reaction.

She thought carefully for a moment before replying, "we're getting into a gray area that could get complicated . . . but I'm not against the idea. Just understand that if I say no on something, it's because it would hurt the case and not my feelings."

"Understood." Horatio replied.

--OO--

Early the next day, Horatio checked with the night crew to see if they had any further developments in the case and was given some faxed documents received from FBI Agent Glen Cole. Horatio remembered him, they had worked together before. He went to his office and began reading through the material.

The FBI were very familiar with the methods the killer used and their background on their killer was very extensive listing numerous victims in several states over a time span of a quarter of a century. They had added a DNA profile from semen taken at one of the killer's earliest incidents. No doubt a cold case examination had brought the new evidence to light since DNA testing didn't exist that far back. The killer preferred young girls but was suspected in a half dozen male rape-homicides as well. It looked like Alexx was right – no one was safe. As he read on, he noticed that there were no survivors except for one and her name was listed only as Jane Doe. Horatio decided it was time to give Glen Cole a call and find out who Jane Doe was. He needed to talk to her.

A long 15 minutes later, Horatio was still no further than before in attempting to get a name of the surviving victim. Glen Cole was steadfast in keeping the person anonymous for her own protection.

Frustrated, Horatio decided to take a walk down to the AV lab and see how things were going. Both Dan and Tyler were examining the tapes for a good image of the children for possible identification when Horatio arrived.

"The Feds have sent us this information on our killer." He handed the folder to Dan Cooper. "See if you can get some images for identification against these." As an afterthought, he added, "Oh, and Dan, shuffle your other workload to Jade while you do this."

Dan looked over at Tyler but never said anything. As soon as Horatio was gone, Tyler spoke up. "Looks like Jade has been taken off the case."

"Yeah, she was having a tough time." He opened the folder to see what kind of job he had ahead of him. "But I can handle it."

It was the end of Tyler Jenson's shift, so he packed up his stuff and walked down the hallway. Before he could exit the building, however, Eric Delko stopped him to inquire about any new developments. "We got a bunch of stuff from the Feds. Cooper has it right now." Tyler explained. "It also looks like Jade Reno has been taken off the case."

This was news to Delko. "How's that?"

Tyler continued, "Horatio told Dan to process the data and give all his other work to Jade." He kind of chuckled, "so is there anything going on between those two?"

Delko asked cautiously, "between Dan and Jade?"

"No, between Jade and Horatio!" Tyler looked around to make sure no one was listening. "He has her home phone number on his cell, she wants off the case and suddenly it happens. I was just wondering, you know."

Delko's response was short and to the point, "That's none of our business. Just stay focused on the work okay." But Eric couldn't help but wonder if that was why Jade was rejecting his advances for a date.

Tyler shrugged it off and left while Eric continued down to his lab.

As the morning wore on, Horatio received a visit from a very unlikely person.

"Got a minute?" Horatio nodded yes and FBI Agent Peter Elliott came in and sat down.

"Glen Cole asked me to stop by and be a liaison between you and the surviving rape victim," explained Peter. "I'll try to be as helpful as I can but you understand, her identity will not be revealed to anyone."

"Why is that Peter?" Horatio asked testily. This was not the time for games yet the FBI seemed determined to play one.

Peter smiled, "witness protection program."

Suddenly Horatio understood the secrecy and why Peter Elliott, of all people, would be involved. The victim had been a witness for the FBI and in turn, they had given her a new life.

"Can you tell me anything new that Glen Cole may have left out." Horatio knew that the two agents had probably collaborated together on what would be shared and that Peter would most likely not offer any new information, but he had to ask.

"I can tell you that once the killer found out the girl survived, he came back and killed her entire family." He pulled a sketch from his folder, "and this is the sketch that was compiled from the girl's description of the man."

Horatio looked at the sketch closely. "So he thought he had killed her."

"Which victim did the DNA specimen come from?" He asked further.

"This same girl," Peter replied. "I've met her and she is one tough woman. If anyone could survive a serial killer, she could."

"If you need anything else, here is my cell number, give me a call." Peter left his card on the desk.

Horatio thanked him and Peter left.

Delko and Calleigh sat in the lab with photos of their two unidentified victims laying on the table which Cooper had been able to grab off the tapes. He had already gone through all the known victims that Agent Glen Cole had supplied and compared them against the photos. Eventually they narrowed down the search to a dozen or so girls. Eric had then contacted Agent Cole and requested better pictures be sent to him, via email, on their narrowed list.

"Hey, I think I found Jane Doe #2!" Eric held Cole's photo against the image they had and there was indeed a resemblance.

"So who is it?" Calleigh inquired as she leaned over to look.

Eric looked through the reports. "Great! Looks like they don't know either. They have her listed as Jane Doe."

"Hey, take a look at the date." Calleigh pointed to the report, "1984 - This is a very old case. Maybe the person on the other VCR tape is just as far back. That might account for why some are on DVD's and others are on VCR tapes."

"You might be right. The one's on DVD's are more recent victims." Eric thought they were on to something.

"I'll let H know." Eric put in a call to Horatio to give him the news.

* * *

**Author's Note: Agent Glen Cole and Agent Peter Elliott appeared in several episodes of CSI: Miami so I thought I'd use them for my story as well.**

**FBI Agent Glen Cole** - Mark Rolston  
**FBI Agent Peter Elliott** - Michael B. Silver


	6. Chapter 6

**The Rape of Horatio Caine - Chapter 6 of 10  
By Celtic Lady**

Horatio awoke suddenly to the sound of his cell phone ringing. It was still dark outside as he looked at the clock – it was 4 a.m.

"Yes." He rolled onto his back and rubbed his eyes as he listened. "I'm on my way."

Another victim had been found and Horatio Caine had been specifically requested to respond.

Horatio arrived on the scene to find Frank Tripp already there.

Frank was pretty shaken up as he talked, "looks like Jade Reno."

Horatio rushed up to the already covered body and pulled up the sheet. The badly mutilated body was a nude, young lady that fit Jade's body size and her sandy blonde hair was similar in style but the face was unrecognizable from the beating she had endured plus the girl had been skinned. A knife stabbed into her heart held down a sheet of paper with a name on it – Jade. Horatio's heart sank as he let the sheet drop back down and the Coroner's office wheeled the body away.

He realized that his hands were shaking when Frank motioned him over to the alley where the body had been found. "Another calling card." Frank pointed to the VCR tape.

"So why give us her name. Did he think we wouldn't figure it out when she didn't show for work?" Frank questioned.

"I don't know Frank. But this one is definitely different." Horatio surveyed the scene carefully.

He got on his phone, "Eric, I need you to come in early and give me everything you can find on Jade Reno. And Eric, report only to me."

Eric was already working on the request by the time Horatio got to the office. "Eric, what have you found so far?" Horatio looked at the screen that Delko had been reading.

"Not much H. Do you want to tell me what this is all about?"

Horatio revealed, "she appears to be our latest victim and I want to know why the killer knows her name and targeted her."

Eric could feel all the energy drain from his body as he heard the bad news. "Jade's dead?"

"I want to know where she's lived and if she has ever been a victim of rape." Horatio demanded.

Eric pulled himself together and began researching Jade's background. "Looks like she's lived in Miami all her life." He scanned the screen for more, "no parents listed – they may be deceased."

He switched databases to see if she was ever a victim of crime but came up empty. "Nothing in the crime database."

"Keep looking Eric. Check and see where she attended college – it may have been out of state. Let me know what you find."

Meanwhile, Jade was running late as she entered work carrying a hot chocolate in her hand. As she walked down the hallway, she quickly noticed that several people were starring at her. Angered that her discussion with Horatio may have become public knowledge, she made a bee-line to Horatio's office.

"Why is everyone starring at me!" she angrily asked. "You didn't tell anyone about our conversation did you?"

"Jade!" Horatio stood up in shock. "You're alive."

"Uh, yeah." She was puzzled by his strange statement and paused before she cautiously asked, "what's up?"

At that moment, Eric walked in also surprised. "Jade, you're alive!" He smiled at seeing the good news then handed Horatio a folder and asked him, "do you want me to continue on that research?"

Horatio smiled as he answered, "yes I do. Let me know what else you find."

"Okay, what is going on?" Jade questioned.

Horatio motioned for her to sit down while he looked through the folder.

"Well, we have another victim and initially thought it was you because she had your name left on her." He paused to watch her reaction. "Apparently we were wrong."

Horatio took a seat next to her. "But I'm going to need to know why the killer put your name on our latest victim."

Jade turned white as she heard the news. "I . . . I don't know."

Horatio looked at what Eric had dug up on her. "Jade, you have a very sparse background which is unusual. We called the college you attended and they've never heard of you." Horatio looked over at her as he continued, "care to elaborate on that?"

"What! Of course I went there." Jade was starting to feel pretty nervous. She knew they would go through every detail of her background – a background which she felt would not hold up to their scrutiny.

Horatio thought it best if they continued their conversation in an interrogation room. He knew he'd have to ask her some difficult questions and preferred it be under formal conditions. He led her to the room and had an officer stand guard while he returned to his office and made a phone call.

"Peter, this is Horatio Caine. I have some more questions for you."

Eric thought it was a long-shot as he went to Jade's desk and lifted a couple of fingerprints. He had hoped it might turn up some additional information somewhere. As Frank Tripp walked by, he witnessed what Eric was doing and figured it was to identify the body. He kept walking.

With prints in hand, Eric scanned them into the AFIS system and ran a search. As the computer processed his request, he returned to a different computer and continued searching for anything on Jade.

Horatio joined him shortly thereafter to see what else he had found. Eric showed him the little amount of data available. "For someone who's lived here all her life, I can't find anything to confirm that."

"What about property records? She remodels old houses and resells them." Horatio offered.

A few clicks on the keyboard showed one residence only. Horatio quickly noticed that it wasn't the address where Jade was currently living.

"Eric, the Feds got nervous when I asked them about Jade Reno."

Eric was surprised, "do you think she's a fed!"

Horatio was slow to answer. "Well . . . that is certainly one possibility. The other is that she is the surviving rape victim who I'm told is currently in the witness protection program."

"That's convenient," Eric remarked sarcastically. "No way to confirm it."

"I have an idea." Horatio pointed to the single residence. "How long has she lived there?"

Eric checked and replied, "eight months."

"And that's how long she's worked for us isn't it." Horatio thought for a moment and then had Eric check the ownership of the apartment building where Jade currently lived.

Eric again entered the information and started the search. A smile came over his face as the results came back. "Jade Austin."

Horatio was starting to feel that Eric was right – Jade Reno was an FBI agent named Jade Austin who just happened to be renting an apartment to Susie Keaton. An apartment that Susie couldn't possibly afford on her salary. This worried Horatio greatly.

"How did you know?" Eric quizzed.

"Well, she did some babysitting for me a couple of times and that is the address where she lived. She mentioned she was remodeling the building."

"So two addresses under two different names. What do you think?" Eric had already made up his own mind.

Horatio thought out loud, "I doubt she entered the witness protection program just in time to start work here. So that means, she has a lot of unaccounted history doesn't she."

Eric shook his head, "what is with the Feds? They've already investigated us once!"

"Yes, but I've noticed that Jade has been spending some time with Rick Stetler and we both know he has his own agenda doesn't he." Horatio remembered when he saw them in the parking lot in Jade's car. Rick Stetler had his arms around her.

Eric suddenly realized something, "Jade has been working nights. They're more relaxed and it gives her plenty of opportunity to snoop around without anyone noticing."

"What do you want to do?" Eric asked.

"Let's go along with the charade for now. We'll believe she is our Jane Doe rape victim in the witness protection program. Don't tell anyone that she is a Fed."

Horatio continued, "and Eric, see if you can find out what she has been snooping into."

"Sure thing!"

Just then the AFIS beeped with a match. Her fingerprints were listed as classified. This was all that Horatio needed as he left to go interrogate Jade Reno about her past.


	7. Chapter 7

**The Rape of Horatio Caine - Chapter 7 of 10  
By Celtic Lady**

"Well it's about time you took my call!" Jade walked over by the window for better reception on her cell phone. "I think my cover has been blown," she whispered. Apparently she didn't like what the person was saying on the other end of the conversation as she replied, "do you think they're stupid! Duh!"

Jade kept turning to see if anyone was coming as she continued, "I didn't do anything – the serial killer is targeting ME now! This means Miami-Dade has to look into my background and find out why and I know you guys gave me a crappy background." She pointed as though the other party could see it. "Hey, I own a voodoo doll – don't make me use it!"

"Listen to yourself. Do you really think, 'maybe' they won't notice, will cut it?" She made a little ditto gesture with her hands when she said maybe. In an escalating tone, she continued, "if this were a regular undercover job I'd be packing my bags, as we speak, because otherwise I'd be dead!"

Jade leaned her head against the window in frustration. "Peter, maybe this was a bad idea. Maybe I should just eat crow and apologize to Cole for hitting him." She began calming down as she listened awhile longer but then suddenly exclaimed, "You what?! You told them what? Please tell me you didn't." Jade couldn't resist looking upward and flipping the bird to the God who had put her in this living Hell. "Peter, ask Cole what I do to people who piss me off! Just ask him."

She wanted to just bang her head against a wall at that point but couldn't without bringing undo attention to herself. "Don't sweet-talk me Peter. When I call you sweetheart, it's only to keep up the ruse. Nothing more!"

Jade saw Horatio coming down the hallway. She immediately hung up the phone with no goodbye or anything and sat back down at the table. Jade took a sip of her hot chocolate only to find out it was cold and angrily tossed it into the trash can.

Horatio strolled in, calm and collected, and took a seat across from Jade. He laid a folder down on the table but didn't open it. He was watching Jade's reaction but she gave none.

"Jade, I need to know what's going on." Horatio leaned forward slightly as he placed his elbows on the table. "How does this serial killer know you?"

Jade was avoiding Horatio's eyes as she starred at the table. She began biting her nails nervously. "He's stalking me isn't he?"

Horatio stared at her. "Probably."

"Are you going to protect me?" She asked timidly.

"Yup." Horatio put his question to her again, "Jade, why is he after you?" He wasn't softening his questions like he would normally do in a situation like this and Jade immediately picked up on it. She was somewhat hurt that he didn't feel she warranted any compassion but quickly turned the pain to anger.

Jade thought for a moment, before speaking. "Why don't you ask him!"

She looked up and stared Horatio straight in the eye whereupon he immediately saw an anger that he had never seen before in her. Then she did something strange. She took off an elastic-band bracelet she was wearing on one wrist and removed her wide watchband from the other. She pulled her sleeves up slightly and showed Horatio a narrow scar that circled her wrists. It appeared that Jade had been bound, at one time, so tightly that it dug into her skin leaving scars. She then extended her arms out in a crucifixion pose like they had seen with the third victim and held them there for a moment all the while staring directly at Horatio and not saying a word. Her eyes revealed more than anything as Horatio detected the resentment in them as they looked back at him.

Then she put her bracelet and watch back on and sternly replied, "leave it alone." She paused before continuing, "my life is private and I intend to keep it that way."

Horatio was totally taken aback by the display. Maybe he was wrong and she wasn't FBI after all maybe she really was their Jane Doe rape victim. This was going to be far harder than he thought.

"I'll need to pack some clothes and things. I'm guessing you'll put me in a safe-house," Jade queried in a cold tone.

"Um, yes, we will. I'll have an officer transport you home to get your things." Now Horatio was having a hard time looking her in the eye.

"Let me get things set up and I'll be back." Horatio quickly left Jade alone in the room and returned to his office.

As Jade sat there, she saw Rick Stetler walk by. She jumped up and knocked on the window drawing his attention and then motioned him inside.

Seeing the guard posted peaked his curiosity so he walked over and entered the room.

"Jade, what's going on?" He motioned to the guard.

"I'm being stalked by the serial killer. Horatio has to put me in a safe house for awhile until it's safe." She added, "I don't know how long I'll be gone."

"Oh my gosh!" Stetler was stunned to hear this.

"Can I ask you something?" Jade continued. "I'm kind of the new kid here so I don't know who's good at their job and who isn't. How good is Horatio? Do you think he'll be able to find the killer and keep me safe or do I need to really worry?"

Stetler was startled by her question. "I ah . . . I'm probably not the person to ask. Horatio and me don't exactly get along."

"But you're IAB! You know who all the screw ups are!" Jade could tell he was indecisive. "Rick, I'm scared. I've seen what this killer does to his victims and I don't want to become one."

She hung her head, "I just don't want someone's mistake to cost me my life."

"I understand." Rick put his arm around Jade's shoulders as he continued, "I tell you what, why don't you call me when you get to the safe house and keep me updated. I'll then monitor things from here and if I see any problems, I can step in and keep you safe."

Jade wiped a tear away from her eye, "would you? Coz I don't know what else to do. I'm desperate."

"Leave everything to me Jade. I'll have your back." Before he could leave, Jade gave him a huge hug. Stetler then left before anyone could see him talking to her.

After he walked down the hallway and out of site, Jade smiled to herself as she gloated, "God, I'm good!"

Horatio returned with two additional officers to escort her to her apartment.

--OO--

Tyler Jenson had completed his shift and was running late at getting out of the building. Rumors had spread quickly, with everyone wondering why the killer was targeting Jade Reno. She was definitely the topic of conversation.

Frank saw Calleigh in the AV lab talking to Dan Cooper and Tyler Jenson and decided to join them. He found himself attracted to Calleigh and was trying to get to know her better – what better way than to hang out with her.

"This a private party?" Frank inquired as he walked in.

Calleigh gave him a big smile and greeted him, "why no, come on in Frank."

"I guess you heard about Jade Reno," Dan mentioned.

"Yeah, I heard. I was there when we found the body." Frank replied.

Tyler perked up, "did everyone really think it was Jade? I heard that they did."

"I did. Of course the note left on the body with Jade's name on it probably helped." Frank revealed with his usual dry wit.

"Thank God it wasn't." Calleigh commented as everyone agreed.

"So has anyone figured out why the killer put Jade's name on the body?" Dan inquired somewhat concerned.

"No, and Jade isn't talking much. Any of you know why?" This fact was puzzling Frank and he hoped her friends might know.

Dan was more than happy to offer his opinion. "Maybe he's targeting Jade to get at Horatio."

Frank wasn't sure if he understood, "why's that?"

Tyler quickly whispered, "Dan, don't go there. It's none of our business."

Dan just grinned and dismissed his friend's warning, "because I think there's something going on between those two."

Frank just smiled and was about to reject Dan's opinion when Dan continued.

"No, I mean it! Horatio has her home phone number on his cell, he takes her off the case when she gets upset, plus I saw them together on the news the other day, talking in his car."

Dan shrugged his shoulders as he persisted, "maybe the killer has been watching them."

Wanting to get Dan off the topic before they got in trouble, Tyler offered another scenario. "Or . . . the killer found out that Jade put his name on her Voodoo doll." He walked over to Jades desk and opened the drawer pulling out an authentic looking Voodoo doll with 'Serial Killer' stapled on the front.

This broke the tension as everyone chuckled.

Dan wondered out loud, "hey what happened to Delko's name?"

Tyler smirked, "she took it off and put this one on instead."

Calleigh rolled her eyes as she turned to Frank, "are you ready to go do some real investigating with me?"

"Sure thing." Frank was still smiling when he turned to Dan and Tyler, "don't give up your day job guys." He then opened the door for Calleigh.

As they walked down the hallway, Calleigh nonchalantly commented, "you know, there could be some truth to that."

"What. Jade and Horatio?" Frank asked surprised.

"No!" Calleigh lightly slapped his arm in jest. "I mean the watching us and seeing us on the news. This guy likes to torment the police and Horatio has been filmed quite frequently on the scene and here at the lab. It might make him or any of us a target."


	8. Chapter 8

**The Rape of Horatio Caine - Chapter 8 of 10  
By Celtic Lady**

Jade was packing some clothes while the officer waited at the open door to her apartment. She glanced over her shoulder, to make sure no one was looking, and placed a Glock 9mm in her bag. She had a funny feeling she'd need it.

She also grabbed her laptop, CD player and some CD's. Depending on how long she might be gone, she figured boredom would play a big part.

Jade looked around to see if she needed to hide anything. She new Horatio would want to search her apartment and she wanted to keep control over what he saw. Taking one last look, Jade picked up her bags and left.

"I think I have everything." She shut and locked her door and left with the officers.

Back in the DNA lab, Natalia Boa Vista was examining the DNA evidence collected from the fourth victim – the girl who had been skinned. Alexx had determined that the young lady had died from strangulation and, to their luck, she had fought back. Scrapings were taken from her fingernails which Natalia was now processing. When the printer finally ejected the results, she immediately compared them to the FBI's DNA profile and they matched.

"Yes!!" She threw her arms up in the air in jubilation.

Natalia quickly dialed Horatio's number to give him the good news. "We have a match!" She was so excited, she was shaking. "The DNA from victim number four matches the FBI profile. The same person contributed DNA at both crimes."

Finally, they had proof that this guy was their serial killer. They had the sketch from 1984 which showed his face and now all they had to do was find him.

Horatio returned his attention to the folder containing Delko's findings on Jade Austin. Several newspaper articles identified her as the lead FBI agent investigating this serial killer whom she nicknamed Lucifer's hand puppet. She had joined the team just out of college and except for a few distractions, had climbed the ranks through attrition. But something puzzled him. If Jade was there to catch the killer, why was she undercover and how did she know he'd come to Miami. Then he saw it, a small article announcing her transfer to the Miami office. They might as well have put a road map in the paper with a big red X over Miami. He couldn't believe the Fed's had purposely sent the killer to them.

--OO--

Jade relaxed in the protected hotel room as the two police officers sat in the neighboring room. She had her laptop on and was watching the screen with her headphones plugged in. No one had any idea that she wasn't listening to music. The screen showed a video link to the AV lab and Jade was reading Natalia's lips. She had heard the news that DNA was matched between this case and her previous ones. But Jade already knew he was her guy. She had hidden cameras set up in several places and could switch between them very easily. She switched back to Horatio's office to see what he was up to. She had the perfect 'fly on the wall' view and could read the articles that Horatio was reading. Seeing him grab his jacket and car keys, she figured he'd be paying her a visit shortly. She turned off her laptop and waited.

Frank caught up with Horatio before he could head out the door.

"Looks like we may have identified the boy," Frank stated. He looked at his notes, "John Hyland of Hialeah."

Horatio nodded, "have you talked with his family?"

"Yeah. The sister raised him and she's pretty hysterical." Frank answered. "I showed them the sketch but they didn't recognize the killer."

"That seems to be the only connection – no witnesses," Horatio claimed.

"So where are you off to?" Inquired Frank.

"I think I'm going to go talk to Jade about Lucifer's hand puppet." Horatio expected a witty comment from Frank but that wasn't what he got.

"You know, there's a rumor going around that you and Jade have a thing," Frank chided. "Anything you want to share?"

Horatio smiled, "don't believe everything you hear Frank." He put on his sunglasses and left.

Frank chuckled to himself.

Horatio arrived at the hotel to find Jade napping. She quickly got up to see if there was any news. Horatio motioned for the officers to leave them alone as he took a seat next to Jade on the couch.

He opened the folder and pushed it over to Jade. "I need to know why you're here." He stated.

Jade looked hard at the newspaper articles and Horatio noticed she seemed to be angered by them. Horatio noticed that she kept glancing into the other room and could tell she was hesitant to talk there.

"Let's take a ride." He offered.

They got into Horatio's hummer and drove to a secluded parking lot and parked.

He again confronted Jade. "I know you're FBI and I want to know why you're here. Are you working this case undercover?"

Jade let out a deep breath. She had to tell him.

"No, I'm not. I've been removed and reassigned."

Horatio couldn't understand why the FBI would remove the agent most familiar to the case and asked, "Why?"

Jade saw no reason to sugar-coat the truth. "I burned out."

Horatio stayed silent and waited for her to elaborate.

"I worked the case for twelve years. Twelve long years." She shrugged her shoulders, "I just needed to get away from it. The in-house shrink said it was consuming me."

It felt good to finally talk to someone on her level. "Most people in the office referred to me as Ahab and the killer as Moby Dick."

"Then one day, I just lost it." She thought back to that eventful day. "I don't know what triggered it, but I punched out one of my co-workers and went into a rage."

She looked over to Horatio and gave a little laugh. "So they reassigned me under Peter Elliott and put me on a bean counter's job until I get my head on straight."

She distressed, "The bad part is, if I don't perform well on this assignment, I'm out the door. And, I don't think having my cover blown constitutes a good job."

She dropped her face into her hands, "God, how did I ever get this low."

Horatio had to ask, "can you help us with this case?"

She looked up, "I know as little as you do. Besides, if you do catch the guy, you don't want it thrown out because an obsessed agent, of questionable mental stability, was involved." She quipped, "that's why I couldn't be too involved with the evidence to begin with."

"Your best bet is to use me as bait to lure the guy in. He wants Ahab – so I say give him what he wants." Jade offered.

A smile crept over her face, "but . . . if I help you with this, will you keep quiet about who I am and let me work my assignment?" She glanced over to find Horatio smiling as well.

"That depends on who you're investigating." Horatio figured it must not be him if she still wanted to continue.

"Ooooh . . . don't make me tell," she pleaded flirtatiously. "I swear it isn't you or your lab. Honest!"

Jade displayed a playful grin which Horatio picked up on and joined in.

"Hmm. Not even a hint?" Horatio leaned closer to her as he pried, "a first name maybe?"

Jade was enjoying their playful exchange as she continued, "but you might tell."

Horatio shook his head no as he boyishly replied, "not me. I wouldn't do that."

"Yes you would."

"Uh Uhhhh. I can keep a secret."

Jade nodded suspiciously as she fell prey to Horatio's charm. "Okay. His name is . . ." She purposely waited.

"Rumpelstiltskin."

Horatio's grin increased with her tease. She was going to make him work for it. "Um . . . I don't think he works here anymore."

"No?" Jade feigned surprise. "Well, then I guess I'll just have to settle for . . . Rick."

Horatio raised an eyebrow upon hearing that name.

"I would jump for joy but that probably wouldn't be appropriate," he remarked. "But if I can be of any help, let me know." Although he tried to keep his composure, he couldn't help but grin at the good news.

"Well, now that you mention it, could you be a little more mean to me when he comes around? I'm trying to get on his good side." She gave Horatio a pleading look.

"Consider it done." He cocked his head sideways as he continued, "now that we have that out of the way, maybe we should discuss 'my' case."

Jade gave a disapproving sigh, "oh, okay."

Horatio again smiled.

"What kind of leads did you have?"

Jade was eager to help and cooperated fully. "This guy had a habit of leaving other peoples trace evidence at the scenes. We could never find a connection between the people and none of them recognized the sketch."

"Interesting." Horatio thought back to the gray hairs they had found on one of their victims. "Do you think he was purposely leaving the evidence or was it transference?"

She continued, "we'd find hair from a convicted felon in a half-way house and semen from a condom belonging to a college student. So we thought it was on purpose."

"He seldom leaves his own DNA but occasionally we do find it."

Jade leaned closer to Horatio as she reiterated her suggestion. "Horatio, I really think the bait idea is worth pursuing. The FBI has already tried everything else and I'm willing to take the risk. I have extensive self defense training so don't worry about me."

He looked at the floorboard while he contemplated her idea. Their victims were piling up and she had a valid point – standard police work wasn't working. "I don't think getting yourself killed constitutes a good job either but what did you have in mind?"

Jade took off her wristwatch and handed it to a puzzled Horatio. "Besides being a watch, this is also a GPS tracker. It will pick me up anywhere – even the middle of the everglades. Combine that with some spyglasses or a wire and you can find me anywhere the killer takes me."

Horatio understood as he handed the watch back to her. "I've discovered that the best laid plans still go awry sometimes. I want a backup plan in case something goes wrong."

Jade wasn't sure what he had in mind but was willing to comply if it would help catch the killer.

Later, Horatio returned Jade to the safety of the hotel while he began making arrangements to implement their plan. They would have Dan Cooper track from the lab with Delko going mobile with a Hummer.

A helicopter would also be in stand-by if needed. Frank would alarm SWAT as soon as it was confirmed that Jade was grabbed and would manage several plain clothes officers placed in strategic areas around main thoroughfares. If their target vehicle passed them, they would sound out.

Now all they had to do was place Jade somewhere where she would be grabbed without it being blatantly obvious. That was the difficult part. Since it was late in the afternoon, Horatio decided to have everyone sleep on it and regroup the next morning when they would implement the plan. He needed time to get everything and everyone set for the assignment.

* * *

**Author's Notes: Two chapters left to go and the serial killer is closing in. Will he succeed in finding Jade? Will Murphy's Law show it's ugly head and foul everything up? Find out in the next chapter as everything accumulates to a climatic end. Stay tuned . . .**


	9. Chapter 9

**The Rape of Horatio Caine - Chapter 9**** of 10  
By Celtic Lady**

**Genre: **Hurt/Comfort, Angst  
**Pairing(s): **Horatio Caine/Jade Reno (sort of)  
**Characters: **General cast plus an other character named Jade Reno  
**Rating: **M-MA (Mature - age 16+) (**WARNING: Rape**)

Tired from the emotional roller coaster he had been on all week, Horatio arrived home and put his keys and cell phone on the counter that separated his kitchen from his dining area. He again noticed the annoying crack in the stone tile that decorated the countertop. He had been putting off getting that crack fixed for so long that it now bothered him every time he looked at it. He turned away and took a quick look in the frig instead. Should he relax and have a cold beer or get back into his jogging routine. He had been so tired lately, from not sleeping, that he thought it best to cut back. But now with a working plan figured out, he figured a jog might clear his head and work out any kinks in the arrangement.

Horatio changed into his jogging clothes and headed out the door. As he was passing the houses on his street, he noticed the lack of children – they were primarily staying around home under the watchful eyes of their parents. When he did see a child, it was only to retrieve an empty trash can from the curb and return it to their garage or back yard. He was glad to see the kids were being careful but the quiet seemed almost surreal as the only sound heard was the screeching of the trash truck's brakes as the trash man stopped in front of each house to collect their garbage. Then the man would get back into the cab, pull up a little and do it all over again.

As Horatio passed the collector, he gave a little wave hello and then suddenly found himself on the ground, disoriented and wondering what had just happened. He was unable to fight the man off as he was shoved into a compartment under the cab of the truck. All he could do was look up into the man's face. Then his wrists were placed into a set of handcuffs secured to the inside of the compartment. Horatio recognized the sound as the cuffs were snapped shut. Still bewildered, he was unable to stop the man from injecting something into his arm as everything suddenly went black.

The garbage man then shut and locked the compartment door and went about finishing his job of collecting the trash as though nothing had ever happened.

Hours later, Horatio awoke in a barren warehouse stripped of all his clothing and tightly secured onto a metal wire-framed box which was bolted to the concrete floor. Although his palms and knees still supported his weight, his legs and arms were latched solidly to the frame. He also noticed that a belt secured his waist against movement. He was quickly beginning to feel like one of Michael Vick's dogs as he looked around helpless and alone. It occurred to him that no one would even miss him until the next morning when he didn't show for work. That meant the killer had all night long to have his fun before anyone would even start looking. Horatio tugged furiously at the restraints that held his wrists. Exhausted, he finally dropped his head and waited for the inevitable.

He didn't have to wait long. The man returned with Horatio's cell phone, badge, and gun.

"I see you've been in my house." Horatio realized that the killer must have been stalking him all along.

The man stayed silent as he opened up a large suitcase and began removing his tools of torture. He carefully admired and then placed each item, on a folding table he had erected, making sure Horatio had a clear view. Finally, he pulled out a digital camcorder which he placed on a tripod and aimed down at Horatio. Once everything was in it's proper place, he began.

Hours later, Horatio had endured a severe beating and whipping with welts covering all of his exposed backside. His face was bloodied and bruised from several punches inflicted when he didn't give the answer the killer wanted to hear. The killer wanted Jade but Horatio knew that if he gave her up, there would be no reason for the killer to keep him alive. Blood dripped profusely from his nose, creating a small pool on the floor, as he breathed heavily.

Horatio wasn't sure if the killer stopped out of exhaustion or if he just wanted to step back and admire his work. Either way, he was grateful for the break.

But eventually, the second phase started. The killer removed his own clothing and donned a sadistic leather mask over his face. He then got down onto the floor level with Horatio. The killer was now fully visible to the camera as he become more intimate with Horatio's body. The time for questions was over as Horatio tried desperately to hold back his tears. The man took his time, violating his victim repeatedly, and rarely spoke except to acknowledge his own gratification. He moved the camera several times to focus on close-ups of what he was doing.

After what seemed to be an eternity, the killer stopped and rested. He added an attachment to the frame, which would restrict Horatio's head movement, and then repositioned the camcorder so Horatio's face would be clearly visible in the foreground. The killer wanted to catch Horatio's embarrassment and shame as he continued to torment him with torture and degradation. As the killer repeatedly molested and raped Horatio, he talked frequently to the camera and commented on what he was doing and how satisfying it was. He spoke as though Horatio was a consensual participant and praised him many times inferring that Horatio was actively trying to please and arouse him. The head attachment restricted Horatio from speaking or denying any willing involvement. All he could do was cry as muffled screams escaped his throat. Finally he lost consciousness.

When he finally awoke, Horatio found himself on his back, spread-eagle, and tethered to the floor. The camcorder was positioned so that none of Horatio's bruised body was afforded any privacy. Just when Horatio thought it couldn't get any worst, the killer injected him with a hallucinogenic drug to increase his fear and magnify the terror. The torture and rape then continued as Horatio's screams were lost to the night.

--OO--

Frank arrived at work early, eager to get started on their stakeout. When Horatio didn't show for work, everyone became concerned. The concern increased when their phone calls to his cell went unanswered. Frank and Calleigh rushed to Horatio's home where they found the front door ajar. Frank immediately called for backup as he withdrew his gun from it's holster. With Calleigh watching his back, they both cautiously entered the house. Both went from room to room acknowledging "Clear" when they deemed it safe until they finally reached the master bedroom.

Both rushed into the room to find a figure on the bed covered with blood soaked sheets. A man's foot protruded from underneath. With his gun aimed at the bed, Frank motioned for Calleigh to pull down the sheet and reveal the face of it's occupant. It wasn't Horatio.

Calleigh looked at Frank who then called for the Coroner and the crime lab to report to the scene. Calleigh put on a pair of latex gloves and began observing the scene for evidence.

"Frank." She pointed to the mirror. It was a DVD propped up and written above it, in blood, was "_Jade_."

Her heart sank.

Everyone quickly arrived to process the crime scene with Delko collecting fingerprints, Alexx examining the body, Calleigh photographing and collecting evidence and Natalia searching the outside perimeter for clues. They worked thoroughly and quickly knowing they were in a race against time.

As soon as she got back to the lab, Natalia began immediately processing the trace evidence collected at the scene. It took all her strength to keep from crying as she clipped a swab and placed the piece in a vial. She then waited patiently for the printout. After entering the results into CODIS, she got a hit – it was the blood of Horatio Caine.

Frank immediately had Jade brought to the lab. "It's confirmed, the killer has Horatio."

Before Frank could elaborate, Jade jumped in. "We have a plan B in case he was grabbed instead of me." She ran over to Dan's computer and pulled up a secure website where she entered a password.

"I gave him a GPS tracker to wear just in case." On the screen appeared a Miami map and GPS coordinates. On the map appeared a little red square.

"This is where he is," Jade pointed. "It looks like some kind of industrial park."

Frank immediately got on the phone to SWAT. "I have a location."

"Frank. No sirens or he'll kill Horatio." Jade explained.

"No sirens. Got that! We don't want him to know we are coming." Frank ended the call and rushed out the door with Jade following closely behind.

"I'm going with you Frank. Don't even try to talk me out of it." Jade was determined she was going to be there for Horatio.

They quickly arrived on the scene where SWAT had already set up their sharp shooters and their men were securing the perimeter.

Frank swiftly assessed the situation and suggested, "you know, if we go barging in there, he's gonna kill Horatio for sure. We need to check it out and see what we have first."

"I agree." Jade added.

She pulled out her gun. "Let's take it slow and easy."

Frank entered one door while Jade circled around and entered another. The place was your standard industrial building with metal staircases, exposed pipes and A/C ducts with just a lot of metal and dirt everywhere.

Frank spotted Jade who seemed to be closing in on a stairway. He decided to ease over her way to back her up. As he got closer, he could hear muffled cries of pain and knew Jade was on to something.

Jade slowly opened the door to the stairwell and peeked inside. It was clear. Frank followed. Jade motioned that the noise was coming from the basement and pointed downstairs.

They slowly made their way down as Frank whispered in his radio, "They're in the basement – move in."

When they reached the bottom of the landing, they slightly opened the door and peeked inside. It was apparent that the killer didn't know anyone was there as he participated in his cruel game. It was also apparent that Horatio couldn't take much more pain.

Jade motioned to Frank that she would open the door and he could rush in with her following. They would have to move fast to keep the killer from inflicting a fatal blow to Horatio. Frank agreed and counted down on his fingers - three . . . two . . . one . . . "Miami-Dade! Get your hands where I can see them!"

Jade was right behind him and quickly moved to the side to have the killer in a crossfire. They had hoped that they could take him down with no incident, but the killer wasn't willing to go quietly as he ran. Frank took a shot but missed. Jade hit her mark but the killer kept going forcing Frank to run him down. Then the two started fighting hand to hand as Jade rushed over to Horatio.

"Hold on Horatio. Help is on the way!" she screamed. She began removing the restraints that held him.

Frank and the killer were tumbling over wooden crates and slamming into walls as the killer tried to get Frank's gun. Jade rushed over to help and grabbed the killer's arm only to be backhanded hard by the killer and knocked back into the concrete wall. She wasn't about to let the killer get away – this was their only chance. Jade punched him repeatedly in the kidney's while Frank tried to get him on the ground. This guy was strong and even Frank was having difficulty.

SWAT arrived just in time to assist and get the situation under control as Jade ran back over to Horatio and screamed, "I need a blanket over here!"

Horatio was looking up at her through tear-filled eyes as a blanket was placed over him. Jade shielded his eyes so he wouldn't see the crowd of people in the room. She didn't want him to feel ashamed.

The paramedics were brought in and began working on him. They inserted an IV and placed him in a gurney. As they started rolling him out, Jade walked up and demanded, "keep his face covered outside. I don't want anyone looking at him. Understand!" She pulled the blanket up over his face and let them take Horatio away.

It was at least an hour before Jade and Frank could get to the hospital. Everyone else was already there sitting in the waiting room.

Frank inquired, "how is he?"

Eric walked up, "pretty bad. He's got a lot of injuries - they're still bandaging him up."

The Emergency Room doors opened and a nurse walked out to address them. "We've got him stabilized and did a rape kit but he doesn't want to see anyone. He's tired and needs to rest."

"Nurse, we really need to get photos of his injuries." Eric explained, "for evidence."

"I'll check with him and see what he wants to do." The nurse left and returned a few minutes later. "No pictures. He doesn't want any taken."

"Nurse." Jade removed a silver chain from her neck that held a crucifix with a yellow and green Jade gourd charm dangling on each side. "Can you give this to him?" She held out the necklace for the nurse to take.

"Sure." She started to leave with the necklace when Eric stopped her.

"Miss, we really need photos. Without them, Horatio might have to testify on the stand against his attacker. With photos, we might be able to spare him." Eric was hoping the nurse would understand and help them.

The nurse stood her ground as she sternly replied, "No! You can try again tomorrow."

Since they were already in the Emergency Room, Jade went ahead and signed in to have her own injuries looked at. She had a terrible headache for which she had already downed some Tylenol but it wasn't working. She had no idea she was getting a black eye.

"You gonna be okay?" Frank inquired. "I need to go do some paperwork and make sure booking didn't have any problems."

Jade assured him she would be fine and that she would take a taxi home. The killer had hit her harder than she originally thought and she was feeling the effects.

The waiting room emptied pretty fast of CSI members and Jade found herself waiting alone. The emergency room was bustling with people as Jade waited patiently. Her head was throbbing so bad she didn't even hear them call her name the first time. She kept picturing Horatio's nude body covered in blood. She wanted to cry every time she pictured his swollen face and his eyes looking up into hers.

Jade suddenly became aware that her name was being called by the nurse. She jumped up and followed her to an examination room.

Eric brought the evidence back to the lab that the nurse had collected from Horatio's body. As he gave it to Natalia to process he told her, "make this your number one priority."

Meanwhile, Calleigh proceeded to the warehouse where the crime occurred. She wanted to get more crime photos when Rick Stetler approached her.

"Calleigh, I need you to stop."

She was just getting ready to insist when Rick explained, "the day shift is too emotionally involved. We're going to let the night shift run with this one."

"Oh." Calleigh knew he was probably right but didn't like it none the less. She handed him the camera and left.

The remainder of the day passed slowly with everyone feeling like they were running on auto pilot. Moral was at an all time low as the team spoke quietly amongst themselves. Many took the rest of the day off as their emotions got the best of them.


	10. Chapter 10

**The Rape of Horatio Caine - Chapter 10 of 10  
By Celtic Lady**

Horatio awoke early the next morning and realized that someone was holding his hand. The sun hadn't come up yet so the room was still filled with darkness. The hallway seemed eerily quiet as he laid there for a few minutes collecting his thoughts. He could tell that his face was swollen and knew he'd be in pain if he turned his head to see who it was. As he laid there, sleep overtook him again depriving him of knowing.

It wasn't until mid-morning that he would wake again. Who ever watched over him the night before was gone. He was more coherent this time as he remembered why he was there. He slowly looked around the room – he was alone. He started to remember the events of the previous day. Frank caught the killer and when he opened his eyes, Jade was looking down on him – she was laying a blanket on him. He seemed to recall that she placed her hand on his head and he felt better.

His thoughts were interrupted as a nurse entered his room and took his temperature. "I see you're awake."

He heard the words but couldn't make himself respond back to her. He just stared as she opened the blinds to let some light shine in the room.

"I'll be back later to check on you." Then she was gone.

Horatio closed his eyes as he felt a wave of emotion come over him. Everyone at work would know what happened to him. He wasn't sure how he'd ever be able to face them again. Tears flowed down the side of his face as he swallowed hard.

He wasn't expecting a hand to touch him and opened his eyes suddenly when someone had grasped his hand in theirs. It was Jade.

"Hey." She sat down and brushed his tears away from his face with her other hand. "Just relax. We don't have to talk."

She leaned back in the chair and settled into a comfortable position while never letting go of his hand. As she closed her eyes, Horatio could see the bruise on the side of her face. She must have been there with Frank when they caught the killer. Horatio remembered the crucifix and realized it was still in his other hand. He clutched it tightly for reassurance.

The two of them stayed silent for some time before Horatio squeezed her hand and she opened her eyes.

"Hey." He whispered. "Can I get some water?" His voice was weak and dispirited as he tried to speak.

Jade quickly poured him a glass and unwrapped a straw to help him. "Let's sit you up a little okay." She brought the head of the bed up a little and adjusted his pillows before offering him the water.

After he drank his fill, Jade put the cup on the table. She wasn't talking much and Horatio thought she was going to close her eyes again. Somehow, he couldn't let her do that.

"What time is it?" He asked.

Jade looked at her watch, "10:30."

"Shouldn't you be at work?"

Jade tried to force a smile, "Sick leave." She pointed to the bruise. "I have a mild concussion."

It was difficult for Horatio to speak. His throat felt raw like he had a bad cold. At best, he could garner a raspy whisper.

"Are you going to stay here all day?"

Jade smiled, "Yep."

"Do I get a bed-time story?" He grinned slightly but the pain quickly wiped it away.

"Ah, sure." Jade wasn't sure where the conversation was going but at least he looked to be in good spirits considering.

"What would you like to hear?"

"Anything. Just talk to me."

"Hmmm." Jade thought for a moment. "Anything is such a broad topic. Can you narrow that down a little?"

Horatio responded, "Tell me about your life."

That was no help. Her life was complicated and filled with lies at the moment. She had to give it some thought but then something came to mind. . . the truth. "Well, there's not much to tell. My boss thinks I'm a screw-up. I've just about burned all my bridges at the FBI and I really don't know what is going to happen to me."

She leaned her head back on the chair before continuing. "I guess I'm pretty stubborn and people just don't know how to deal with it. Okay, and I don't exactly follow the rules all the time either. And . . . I guess I don't always play well with others." The more she thought about it, she realized she must really be a difficult employee.

"Take this assignment for instance. My boss sent me here to get me out of his hair, not because he thought I'd be good at closing the case. I'm really suppose to be investigating you but luckily, I report to Peter Elliott now and I convinced him that IAB should be looked at instead. So Peter is kind of going out on a limb for me. He's giving me a lot of freedom and I don't really know if it's because he believes in me or if he's waiting for me to hang myself." She stopped for a moment to ponder that thought.

"I guess you could say I have trust issues." She glanced over to Horatio to see if he had fallen asleep on her, but instead, he was wide awake and taking in every word.

"I don't know if Peter has my back or not and I'm not sure if I even care. I'm starting to question what I've done with my life and I don't think I'm satisfied with the answer. I don't want to bring up the serial killer but he took up all my time and I never really got to help people and make a difference. I saw them after it was too late."

"Jade, you helped me – you saved my life." Horatio offered.

Jade disagreed, "No, I was too late – the damage is already done. Your life is never going to be as innocent as it was before. I didn't save you at all . . . I just . . . added more pain and suffering. If I had saved you in time, you wouldn't even be here."

She was silent for a moment before she confessed, "I intentionally blew my cover because I had heard it was leaked that I was sent to Miami and I knew the killer would come here after me. I didn't want him going after anyone else."

Her voice trailed off as she thought about the pain in her own life – her own loss of innocence.

"I am so sorry." Tears began to form in her eyes as she continued, "I really wanted to make a difference for you, ya know. I should have monitored your GPS even before we were ready to start. I should have had your back just in case, but I didn't and you got hurt because of it. I screwed up again."

The tears began to stream down her cheeks and she wiped them away. "I wish it had been me instead of you," she cried.

"Don't say that! Never say that!" Horatio realized the pain she was going through. "You are not to blame."

She turned and looked out the window as she whispered to herself, "You can't break what's already broken."

Horatio was stunned. He laid there staring at her for some time before he finally spoke again. "Do you have your camera?"

Jade looked over at him, "Yeah, it's in my car. Why?"

"I think you need to photograph my bruises," he replied with difficulty. "Before they go away."

Jade shook her head no, "It's too soon. You're not ready. Besides, we have time for that – we don't have to do it right now."

But Horatio was insistent, "I want to get it out of the way before I change my mind. Go get your camera."

Reluctantly she agreed. When she returned, she also had a small hand towel which caught Horatio's eye. He was nervous as to what the towel might be used for and was about to ask when Jade folded it lengthwise like a blindfold.

"I find that covering your eyes actually helps so I'm going to do that okay." She held up the towel so Horatio could see it.

She brushed his amber hair aside as she gently draped the towel over his eyes. After putting on some latex gloves, she slowly pulled his arms from beneath the blankets and took some photos.

"You can tell me to stop at any time. Okay."

After finishing with his arms, she knew she had to do his chest. There would be a lot of trauma there but she felt it might be inappropriate. "Horatio, I'm going to fold this blanket down to your waist okay." She took a photo of his bruised neck before continuing, "Are you okay with me photographing your chest?"

Horatio swallowed hard, "Yeah, go ahead."

Jade delicately untied the hospital gown and guided his arms out of the sleeves as she folded it down to his waist. His ribs were badly bruised and she thought she spotted some burn marks.

"Still doing okay?"

"Yeah, I'm okay."

Jade took several close-ups of the mysterious burns and also got side shots of his torso showing his ribs. Then she redressed him and pulled the blanket back up to his neck and tucked it in around him.

"I'm going to do your legs now okay." Jade wanted to make sure she warned him before uncovering any part of his body in case he objected. She wanted him to feel relaxed, and most importantly, in control.

She very slowly uncovered his foot and then continued to fold back the blanket up to his upper thigh.

"Let's bend your leg a little at the knee. I think that will make it easier for both of us."

This gave her a clear view at his inner thigh where most of the bruising had occurred. She also photographed his knee and ankle then recovered his leg and repeated the steps with the other one.

Horatio realized that she seemed to have experience in working with victims. Her ability to make him feel comfortable and not self-conscious was clearly shown.

Once she was done with his legs, she figured his back would show the most trauma. That is why she saved it for last.

"Do you think you can roll on your side and let me photograph your back?"

Horatio tried, but was having trouble so Jade gently applied pressure to his shoulder and hip to help him. He winced in pain.

"Sorry. I was just trying to help." Jade felt bad that she had caused him some pain.

It took some time but he finally managed to get on his side. He removed the blindfold as Jade slowly folded the blanket down to his waist.

"You're going to feel a little draft okay." She pulled his gown open to reveal his wounds. As she started to grab her camera, a small sob escaped his lips.

"Okay. I won't." She began stroking his head gently to settle him down as she pulled the blanket back up. "I won't do it. Don't worry."

Jade removed her gloves as proof she was done. "It's okay. It's all over." She continued stroking his head as his tears increased to sobs. She sat on the edge of the bed and cradled his head in her arms as she pulled him closer.

"It's okay. It's okay." She whispered in his ear. "Just cry it out."

Jade held Horatio's trembling body as the sobs flowed freely. His chest heaved heavily against hers as she cradled him in her arms and he rested his head on her shoulder. As he sat up with difficulty, the blanket fell down leaving only his hospital gown loosely draped about his shoulders.

She caressed the back of his head and tried to console him. Exhausted and tired, Horatio's sobs slowly subsided but Jade continued to hold him close. Her head rested lightly on his as he seemed to fall asleep in her arms. Eventually, she heard him swallow as he whispered very quietly, "back now."

"What's that?" Jade asked calmly not understanding.

"You can . . . do my back now."

"Not yet." Her voice cracked as she continued to hold him. "Catch your breath a little while longer. Okay."

Jade knew her tears were dripping on his shoulder and tried to inconspicuously wipe them away. But Horatio knew. He wrapped his arms around her waist and they sat there holding each other. Their breathing became synchronized as they seemed to share their intimate exchange of emotions.

For that brief moment, their pain was one.

_THE END._

* * *

**AUTHOR'S NOTES:**

**PLEASE let me know what you thought of this story and it's okay to be critical. There is one story left, of this three story arc, called "Jaded" which concludes Jade's undercover work and covers the aftermath of Horatio's rape (the emotional side).**

**I'm starting to think that I need to write a fourth story that covers the trial of the serial killer who, of course, would want to defend himself. They always do.**

**On a closing note, I know that I jumped back and forth making Jade look like the victim and I did this on purpose. As the FBI agent who had worked on the case, of course she would not be a victim of THIS serial killer, but that doesn't mean she wasn't a victim of another crime. **


End file.
